WOW. Well, if you take a chance on somethings a lot of times you'll be happy you did. I am a gigging accoustic musician who plays acoustic guitar, and to be honest, my last guitar was a Yamaha acoustic which I really loved playing. I loved its smooth, easy action.
A couple days ago that guitar was damaged to a degree that repairing it would have cost as much as replacing it, so I went looking for a replacement for this weekend's gig. (No guitar = no gig = no $$$$). I was searching all of the on-line music gear sites (Guitar Center, Musicians Friend, 123 Music to mention only a few) and was going to select one from those and hope they arrived in time for my performance on Saturday. As the week moved towards the weekend I knew the odds of getting it in time were diminishing by the minute and was starting to get that terribel queasy feeling in my gut. Well, my wife and kids and I were out shopping tonight and I saw the Fender Starcaster acoustic kit. I was a bit hesitant because we were in a regular retail store with a small musical section. I had always sworn I would never buy any instrument in that type of venue. But...it wasn't too expensive (approx $150.00) and it was a Fender (which has a sterling reputation) so I decided to take the chance and buy it. I brought it home, checked out the goodies that came with it (basics: guitar strap, strings, chromatic tuner, picks, allen wrench, dvd for beginners and gig bag (which isn't really too bad for light use). I took the guitar out and spent a few minutes tuning it. At first the strings were a bit hard to get tuned (which is common with many new guitars). But after I got it tuned I was incredibly surprised and pleased with the instrument. It is full sized, and has a very nice tone...very solid sounds. Whether playing lead melodies or chords (including barred), the sounds are excellent. I would expect this quality of sound from a much much much higher priced instrument!
Like I said, the guitar's sound is great. Appearance??? It's really gorgeous. It's a full size dreadnought and the neck and fretboard are easy to move up and down on as you play. The action is nice. The strings that were on the guitar are a little heavier guage than I usually prefer but they are comfortable to play on and I'll probably keep them on for a while before I change them. The finish is beautiful. I have one that has an ash finish with black plateguard and an ebony back and sides. The fingerboard is rosewood. Extremely nice looking instrument that is as much a joy to hold and look at as it is to play.
The accessories are alright! Like I said, the gig bag isn't something you'd want to do any heavy travelling or go on the road with, but it's good for going to local performance and will keep your guitar safe and in a nice presntable condition. The chromatic tuner is okay. I checked it out and it seemed to work well, but I've always preferred my trusty A-440 tuning fork... the strap is nice, picks and strings are okay. I'm already an experienced player so I'll give the dvd to someone who wants to start playing. It would be nice to have had a capo included to complete the ensemble, but again, I have a few already. But for the new and aspiring musician having one included in the goodies would be a great thing.
I highly recommend this instrument for anyone who wants a good, solid instrument but isn't ready or able to drop a lot of $$$$ to own a quality isntrument. I believe that Fender could charge a lot more for this instrument and it would be worth every penny. I'm glad I took the chance and purchased this!

I'm glad you had good luck with it, but I will admit I'm a little suprised. Typically those guitars seem to be beginners guitars and we dont expect much out of them. Its great that you had a positive experience.

We just bought the Starcaster accoustic kit for our daughter's 15th bday.
After having spent a small fortune in the past on drums, clarinets - we
were at first thinking of going to a pawn shop for her guitar, but saw this
at target instead.
Although her kit contained no DVD as promised on the box, we're QUITE pleased with the guitar its' self.
Especially for the price!

I agree the tone is good for this price. The action was ridicously high. though. To the point it makes this guitar a joke. Wouldnt be such a big deal if the bridge was adjustable. The nut is very tallm maybe shortening it would fix it I suspect it will have fret buzz, though. The strings grind and drag even attempting slight vibrato. I would say this guitar isnt quite worth the sticker value, maybe half unless I just received a really bad one. I have an Airline dreadnought, and while the tone is brighter on the Starcaster the Airline has decent action actually very good unless compared to an electric, (it has an adjustable bridge and truss rod) at around the same price range. I will try to swap the nut and bridge piece and see if there's any improvement. Also, a couple of the tuning pegs are loose and buzz violently.

I purchased the acoustic starcaster guitar pack and I own 4 other guitars and I have to say this pack is excellent it took a little bit to get it tuned at first and the gig bag is crap but I bought a hardshell case for it and got it tuned up and it plays and looks superb

I purchased the acoustic starcaster guitar pack and I own 4 other guitars and I have to say this pack is excellent it took a little bit to get it tuned at first and the gig bag is crap but I bought a hardshell case for it and got it tuned up and it plays and looks superb

Hello, we bought this same guitar for my son for Christmas. We can't seem to figure out how to attach the strap? We see where the bottom of the strap attaches, but can't find where to attach the top of the strap? can some please advise?

Hello, we bought this same guitar for my son for Christmas. We can't seem to figure out how to attach the strap? We see where the bottom of the strap attaches, but can't find where to attach the top of the strap? can some please advise?

Thx

you tie it to the head of the guitar, just past the nut with a bit of shoelace.

I also received one of these for Christmas and am very impressed with it so far, but I'm wondering if lighter gauge strings would benefit me. I've learned the basic 8 or 9 beginner chords without a great deal of difficulty but my attempts at barre chords sound horrible, between buzzing and muted strings.

I don't have the extra string pack that was included with me right now, but the string sizes were in fractions of an inch (".023" or similar) rather than "Heavy" or "Medium", etc. Can I assume the strings that come with the guitar out of the box are a heavy gauge, and am I going to be disappointed with lighter strings? Also, will the truss rod require adjustment going from a heavier string to the next lightest size?

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